Department of Radiology
University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health

Wang 2015

 

Year: 2015

Title: Health outcomes in US children with abdominal pain at major emergency departments associated with race and socioeconomic status

Country: United States

Age: All Ages

Sex: All Sexes

Population: Multiple Groups

Care Setting: Emergency Department

Clinical Setting: General Diagnostic Imaging

Data Level: National

Data Type: Private Survey

Data Source: Pediatric Health Information System

Conclusion: Disparities In All Minority Groups

Health OutComes Reported: Yes

Mitigation: No

Free Text Conclusion: Black and Hispanic patients had lower rates of imaging for abdominal pain than White patients. Black and Hispanic patients were less likely to be hospitalized from the ED and had higher rates of perforated appendicitis than White patients.

Abstract: OBJECTIVE: Over 9.6 million ED visits occur annually for abdominal pain in the US, but little is known about the medical outcomes of these patients based on demographics. We aimed to identify disparities in outcomes among children presenting to the ED with abdominal pain linked to race and SES. METHODS: Data from 4.2 million pediatric encounters of abdominal pain were analyzed from 43 tertiary US children's hospitals, including 2.0 million encounters in the emergency department during 2004-2011. Abdominal pain was categorized as functional or organic abdominal pain. Appendicitis (with and without perforation) was used as a surrogate for abdominal pain requiring emergent care. Multivariate analysis estimated likelihood of hospitalizations, radiologic imaging, ICU admissions, appendicitis, appendicitis with perforation, and time to surgery and hospital discharge. RESULTS: Black and low income children had increased odds of perforated appendicitis (aOR, 1.42, 95% CI, 1.32- 1.53; aOR, 1.20, 95% CI 1.14 - 1.25). Blacks had increased odds of an ICU admission (aOR, 1.92, 95% CI 1.53 - 2.42) and longer lengths of stay (aHR, 0.91, 95% CI 0.86 - 0.96) than Whites. Minorities and low income also had lower rates of imaging for their appendicitis, including CT scans. The combined effect of race and income on perforated appendicitis, hospitalization, and time to surgery was greater than either separately. CONCLUSIONS: Based on race and SES, disparity of health outcomes exists in the acute ED setting among children presenting with abdominal pain, with differences in appendicitis with perforation, length of stay, and time until surgery.